Prophets of Doom

What good is sitting alone in your room? But don’t go to hear the music played. Cabaret is not about music, although lively tunes surge throughout, as do a few more tender songs. No. Instead Cabaret calls on you to witness a darkly sinister, evil society on the march. Berlin, turning ugly and brutal.

Within the streets and halls Sally Bowles is frantic and Cliff Bradshaw fears stomping black boots. Meanwhile Fräulein Schneider worries about broken windows or worse should she encourage courtship from Jewish Herr Schultz. Case in point: a pineapple which resembles a bomb.

Pointedly the rhythms, the melodies underscore the story. In this now-famed and acclaimed 1966 musical, Joe Masteroff, John Kander and Fred Ebb epitomized what can be done brilliantly within the confines of a theatre stage. Set pieces, songs and dances at the Kit Kat Klub mirror and reflect increasing doom while you try to leave your troubles outside. The ghosts of Brecht and Weill hover in the shadows. Such multiple resonances collected 10 Tonys in 20 years of vitality.

“We’re in hell almost as soon as we arrive,” wrote Ben Brantley of the New York Times of the latest personification. That’s the one arriving here for a short stay. FYI: Joe Masteroff also wrote the book for sweet and sunny She Loves Me. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Masteroff. Kander and Ebb created 17 musicals together including the equally legendary, satirical Chicago. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kander_and_Ebb